In the past decade, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have become an increasingly crucial facet of many Department of Defense (DoD) operations, due to their versatile and reliable defensive and surveillance capabilities. The DoD currently utilizes several different types of UAVs, with many different capabilities. The smaller systems, referred to as Tier 1 UAVs, primarily perform low-altitude tasks. Tier 1 UAVs range from three to five kilograms in weight. The larger systems, Tiers 2 & 3 perform high-altitude tasks and weight over ten to hundreds of kilograms. Even though all of these UAVs are extremely versatile and autonomous once they are airborne, virtually all of these aerial systems require direct human involvement during launch. The lighter, Tier 1 systems are usually launched by hand, while the heavier Tier 2 & 3 systems are launched using large pneumatic or elastic catapults, which often require two or more personnel to set up and reload after each launch. The UAV launch systems currently used lack two crucial characteristics: autonomy and repeatability.
The current state-of-the-art systems in non-runway UAV capture have two crucial problems. The broad capture mechanism of these UAV capture systems is a net and a snag-wire, respectively. Net capture systems typically consist of a large rectangular surface of webbing, supported upright by an external structure. While the net system allows UAV capture without a runway, the deceleration of the UAV is uncontrollable, leading to stresses on the structure of the vehicle. Additionally, the generally massive size of the system leads to the possibility of entanglement.
Snag-wire capture systems consist of a wire suspended by a crane. A small hook attached to a wing of the UAV snags the wire, causing the UAV to quickly decelerate and spiral erratically around the wire. Similar to the net system, the snag-wire system requires multiple personnel to function, and can cause signification stress on the UAV. The two main problems with the current UAV capture systems are the lack of autonomy and lack of controlled deceleration.
Current UAV launch systems are either human powered or require on-site human involvement for operation. UAV launch from a robotic arm system would permit UAV deployment and capture to be both autonomous and repeatable, providing a safer, faster, and more reliable launch system. A robotic arm UAV capture system has the potential to provide both autonomous and repeatable capture, as well as controlled deceleration to minimize UAV stress.